Australia provides $20 million for children affected by Syrian crisis

Today I am announcing that Australia will provide $20 million for children in Lebanon and Jordan who have fled across borders as refugees due to the Syrian crisis.

The funding will be provided to the United Nations' 'No Lost Generation' initiative to help build better futures for these children by improving their education and addressing the violence and displacement they have faced.

Around half of the 2.7 million Syrian refugees are children, and around 70 per cent of these children are not attending school. Children are the most affected of the fighting - an entire generation is being shaped by fear and violence and, often, without an education.

Australia will coordinate its efforts with other nations to ensure these children can be supported in the region so that they can return to their homes in Syria when the crisis has stabilised.

Australia will provide $9 million to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), $9 million to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and $2 million to Save the Children Australia.

Australia has provided over $130 million to the humanitarian response to the Syrian crisis since the conflict began in 2011. An additional $2 million has been provided to assist in the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons.

The United Nations estimates 9.3 million people inside Syria are in need of assistance making the Syrian conflict the greatest humanitarian, peace and security crisis facing the world today.

Today's announcement will help relieve the burden on neighbouring communities sheltering Syrian refugees in this time of crisis.